Vågå Municipality
Vågå is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Gudbrandsdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Vågåmo. Other village areas in the municipality include Bessheim, Besstrond, Lalm, Maurvangen, and Tessand.
The municipality is the 73rd largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Vågå Municipality is the 217th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 3,529. The municipality's population density is and its population has decreased by 4.2% over the previous 10-year period.
General information
The prestegjeld of Vaage was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838. On 1 January 1908, the municipality was divided into three parts:- the northeastern part became Sel Municipality
- the southeastern part became Hedalen Municipality
- the remaining areas in the west remained as Vaage municipality
Historically, the municipality was part of the old Oppland county. On 1 January 2020, the municipality became a part of the newly-formed Innlandet county.
Name
The municipality is named Vågå, using a very old name for the area since the first Vågå Church was built there. Two origins have been suggested for the name Vågå :- The name Vågå may come from the Old Norse word vega meaning "travel". The area lies on an ancient east–west route mentioned in the Heimskringla.
- The Old Norse form of the name may come from vaga from the word vagi. It was probably originally the name of the lake Vågåvatn, but the meaning is unknown.
Coat of arms
The coat of arms was granted on 23 August 1985. The official blazon is "Gules, a reindeer springing Or". This means the arms have a red field and the charge is a springing reindeer. The reindeer has a tincture of Or which means it is commonly colored yellow, but if it is made out of metal, then gold is used. The design symbolizes the importance of reindeer herding and hunting. It is also based on a character in Henrik Ibsen's book Peer Gynt, who rides on a reindeer bull over the Besseggen mountains. Ibsen got the idea for this book from a local story. The arms were designed by Hans H. Holm and redrawn by Ola T. Rybakken. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.Churches
The Church of Norway has one parish within Vågå Municipality. It is part of the Nord-Gudbrandsdal prosti in the Diocese of Hamar.| Parish | Church name | Location of the church | Year built |
| Vågå | Vågå Church | Vågåmo | 1627 |
Geography
Vågå Municipality is bordered on the north by Lesja Municipality, in the east by Dovre Municipality and Sel Municipality, in the southeast by Nord-Fron Municipality, in the south by Vang Municipality and Øystre Slidre Municipality, and in the west by Lom Municipality.Vågå Municipality lies in a mountainous region just to the east of Norway's Jotunheimen National Park, west of Rondane National Park, and south of the Dovrefjell mountains. The highest point in the municipality is the tall mountain Surtningssue, located on the border with Lom Municipality. Vågå Municipality includes a mountain road to the top of the tall Jetta mountain which provides an unobstructed view of both the Gudbrandsdalen valley and the surrounding national parks.
The river Otta begins in Skjåk Municipality and flows into Vågåvatn lake. Exiting the lake Vågåvatn at Vågåmo, the river continues its journey through the Ottadalen valley leaving Vågå Municipality to meet the Gudbrandsdalslågen river at the town of Otta in Sel Municipality. Lakes in the region include Flatningen.
Climate
Vågå lies in the rain shadow from the Jotunheimen mountains which separate Eastern and Western Norway. The climate is hence characterized by a continental climate. Warm summers and cold winters dominate, and the precipitation is very low. In fact, during some years it receives less than of precipitation.This dry continental climate makes Vågå Municipality an obvious place for the national hang glider and para glider centre of Norway.
Physical geography
Although being affected by the ice-sheet history spanning the Quaternary period of the last 2.5 million years, much of the landscape are moderately imprinted by ice-sheet erosion except from in the main valleys. Even these valleys including Sjodalen and Ottadalen are of pre-Quaternary origin, and were originally sculptured by fluvial rather than glacial erosion. The numerous lakes does remind us of the glacial history, although being much more limited than in the more dramatic s of western Norway.This limited glacial erosion also means that Vågå Municipality had limited glacial erosion during the last glacial period. Many findings of Mammoth pre-dating the last glacial maximum have been found, being evidence of the conservative nature of the LGM in the region.
History
| Ancestry | Number |
 EritreaGovernmentVågå Municipality is responsible for primary education, outpatient health services, senior citizen services, welfare and other social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads and utilities. The municipality is governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor is indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council. The municipality is under the jurisdiction of the Gudbrandsdal District Court and the Eidsivating Court of Appeal.Municipal councilThe municipal council of Vågå Municipality is made up of 17 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The tables below show the current and historical composition of the council by political party.MayorsThe mayor of Vågå Municipality is the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. Since 1946, all mayors with three exceptions have represented the Norwegian Labour Party. Here is a list of people who have held this position:
Øygard caseIn the September 2011 election, Rune Øygard was reelected as mayor, after having served in that role since 1995. His reelection by the municipal council was controversial as he was already under police investigation for alleged child sexual abuse, the so-called Øygard case, sometimes also referred to as the Vågå case. Øygard was granted temporary leave following his indictment in the case, and was succeeded as acting mayor by Iselin Jonassen on 8 May 2012. After being found guilty and sentenced to four years imprisonment, Rune Øygard resigned as mayor. His resignation was granted by the municipal council on 18 December 2012, effective immediately.Notable people
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